Research Design
Ethnography, phenomenology, grounded theory, and case studies are types of
qualitative research designs. McGinley, O’Neill, Damaske, and Mattila (2014) affirmed
that researchers used grounded theory to define or further characterize theories.
Grounded theory was not suitable for my study because I was not trying to discover a
new theory. Researchers used ethnographic design to understand phenomena within a
cultural context (Crandall et al., 2016). The phenomenological approach helped others
understand the human experience but was not suitable for my study because my goal was
not to focus on how a person lives and relates to the world (Moustakas, 1994).
Researchers employed a case study design to observe a particular event and to develop
findings to describe the
how
and
why
of a phenomenon (Cronin, 2014). Yin (2018) stated
that exploring similar events within different contexts added to the analytic depth of
multiple case studies. Hence, I chose to conduct a multiple case study because I wanted
to explore the real-life events, customer relationships, and the SMM strategies used by
small business retailers.
Population and Sampling
The population for the study was five small business retailers located in SATX
with a minimum of five years in business and who employed SMM strategies to engage
customers. The SBDC of SATX was my source of contact information for prospective
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participants. According to the SBA (2017), there are approximately 104,000 small
businesses in SATX. The target population was a group chosen to transfer the study
findings and selecting the target population involved setting attributes that either
qualified or disqualified participants for the study (Robinson, 2014).
Sampling is critical to research validity in interview-based studies (Robinson,
2014). Sampling is the method used to select specific elements by which to conduct the
study (Etikan, Musa, & Alkassim, 2016). According to Robinson (2014), sampling in
interview-based qualitative research consisted of four parts: (a) deciding on the target
population, (b) deciding on an adequate sample size, (c) choosing a sampling strategy, (d)
and sample sourcing. To qualify for this study, participants had to be small business
retailers with a minimum of five years’ experience in the retail industry, located in SATX
and used effective SMM strategies to engage customers.
Gentles, Charles, Nicholas, Ploeg, and McKibbon (2016) posited that establishing
a sample size was necessary for the researcher to gather enough helpful information to
fully understand the phenomenon. Deciding the sample size in the initial stages of
research was critical for planning purposes such as the research timeline and project
planning (Robinson, 2014). The focus for choosing a proper sample size was to obtain
enough data to reach the desired objective (Yin, 2018); however, the sample size for case
studies varied among researchers (Elo et al., 2014). Morse (2015) stated that sample size
depended on the nature, amount of complexity, and scope of the phenomenon, and the
subjective versus concrete nature of the topic. Another factor that influenced the sample
size was the purpose of the study (Elo et al., 2014). Employing the snowball technique
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increased my number of qualified participants. In purposive sampling, also known as
judgment sampling, the researcher had general knowledge of the researched phenomena
and selected participants based on possessed knowledge or experiences (Etikan et al.,
2016). Using purposive sampling in smaller populations might be beneficial for
transferability (Barratt, Ferris, & Lenton, 2015).
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